Chris Matthews Calls Out the GOP on McCain

The Arizona GOP (a species disappearing faster than the Amur tiger), came out with a strongly worded condemnation of John McCain. Seems like they had enough of Mr. Invite the World, Invade the World's support of amnesty for illegals, Obamacare, and "assaults on the Constitution and the 2nd amendment". They were especially angry about McCain "long and terrible record of drafting, co-sponsoring and voting for legislation best associated with liberal Democrats". Significantly, no mention was made of his constant wails for American military involvement abroad.

MSNBC host Chris Matthews - like McCain, an unpleasant, washed out blowhard, jumped in to defend the senator on his show, pointing out that McCain's hawkish interventionism was the position adopted by the GOP during the Dubya years.

The close identification of the GOP with interventionism was a main (if not the main) reason for the Republicans' defeats since 2006. The GOP has become the party of War and Wall Street in the eyes of many Middle Americans.

I heard the Matthews-like response from my liberal and "moderate" (liberals who don't have the guts to admit what they are) acquaintances: "But, your foreign policy views are liberal! The Right is interventionist!" The American public's obliviousness to the long tradition of rightwing non-interventionism is disconcerting and unfortunate, but hardly surprising. For Matthews and his viewers, the American Right is represented by the Weekly Standard.